23 weeks /  by jen geigley

Yup, it's a legit bump. I find myself spilling crumbs on it and having to brush them off my shirt. It's getting harder and harder to zip my normal-sized hoodies. I have to try really hard not to have a little accident when I sneeze. I have had a craving for Chinese food for two solid weeks and at night, I almost always have a hankering for key lime Yoplait yogurt. I'm enjoying full-on karate chops to my insides. They keep me up late at night and that's okay. I've started to collect tiny baby boy clothes in various shades of blue and green. We've nearly finished our kitchen remodel and scored a new platform twin-sized bed for Lo's new room. A bigger bed for big sis ... it's almost exactly like the Berenstain Bears 'new baby' story. (Only papa bear isn't going into the woods to carve a new bigger bed ... out of a tree.) We're having fun with this new stage in our life, and looking forward to the months ahead.

diapers for your dollies /  by jen geigley

Preschool problems: you have lots of babies (or animal babies) and none of them have diapers. What to do? Lo is fascinated with changing her dolls and stuffed animals, and she's been asking me to make them some diapers for awhile now. Below is my five-minute solution, which you too can whip up in no time should you feel so inclined. (Or pressured by a preschooler.)  ;)
The finished 'diapers' look something like this. When you use felt, you can go crazy with the colors!
The only supplies you'll need are a few 8.5x11 scraps of felt, cardboard, scissors and (strong) self-stick velcro squares or dots. (You could also sew non-stick velcro on. This would obviously be a smarter and longer-lasting way to go, but surprisingly, the sticky back velcro we used has worked really well. Even after multiple uses. You could also sew two pieces of felt together, and then sew on velcro, to make thicker, more heavy-duty diapers. Up to you!)
Using the printable template at the end of this post, cut out and trace the diaper shape onto a piece of cardboard. Use this template to trace and cut out as many felt diapers as you want.
 Stick or sew two squares of velcro to the longer back edge of the diaper.
Flip the diaper over to the other side, and stick/sew two more velcro squares to the shorter top edge. (Make sure that on one side, you're using the 'soft' velcro, and when you flip, use the 'scratchy' velcro. So they stick together.)  ;)
It should fold up like this when you're done!
Then, use them to cover all of your littlest friends' tushies.
Click and download this template if you want to make your own. You can trace outside or inside the edges to make it bigger or smaller if you want, but this size seemed to fit almost all of our 12"-ish sized stuffed animals and dolls. Have fun diapering your dollies!

this & that /  by jen geigley



I've been having the best time stocking up on Twinkle's insanely soft and chunky yarn in as many colors as I possibly can. I'm totally into the cool hues this week.
But the best part is quite possibly turning these ...
... into these. Lusciously huge skeins of wool knit themselves into colorful piles of super soft cowls. Almost like magic.
 
(I just updated my shop, by the way. Enter the coupon code FRIDAY – today only – to get free shipping in the U.S.) Have a good one!

carefree cowl knit-along /  by jen geigley

So, yesterday I received a super sweet email from Shannon of luvinthemommyhood.com. She has started a stellar autumn knit-along that I know any and every knitter/crocheter will want to join. This is the perfect excuse to start and finish that cowl pattern that you've been wanting to knit or crochet since last season. (If you're like me, you probably already have the yarn set aside in your stash for it, just begging to be put to good use.) All you have to do is pick a cowl pattern – any cowl will do – and sign up before November 9th.


You can find all things 'carefree cowl knit along' here:

Shannon mentioned that she had started off this knit-along with my Gap-tastic cowl pattern (pictured above) and that it had been a popular choice for knitters so far. So if you want to jump in but don't know what to knit, this would be the perfect project to get you started. Shannon has even created a button for you to add to your blog or what-have-you if you decide to knit along. You can grab yours here.


full-fledged fall /  by jen geigley

We're loving this season.
Color-filled autumn walks and scavenger hunts.
 
Apple pies nearly every week. On average. (Ever since we picked up a peeler.)
 Pumpkin patches and gourds.
Cut-out cookies.
A little autumn mix.
Pretty pumpkins.
Choosing the perfect one.
Haystacks and piggy-back rides.
Chrysanthemums in every color.
So much to love. What do you like best about the season?

over the weekend... /  by jen geigley

Over the weekend, we saw Primus. They still sound so cool, and Les Claypool is definitely one of the best. (Yup, I take my kids to concerts in utero. Lo went to Ministry when she was in my belly. We raise these kids on rock.)
We also went to Minnepolis. Hit up IKEA to get the rest of our kitchen cabinets. And I ate some delicious bbq ribs while I was there. At IKEA. Which totally grossed Bo out.
And then after we got home, I smashed my foot into the metal part of our Le Corbusier couch and broke my toe. How was your weekend?  :)

a baby sweater (for the little dude) /  by jen geigley

I've had this tiny newborn sweater on the needles for awhile now, but finally had the chance to finish it over the weekend. I've decided that this is quite possibly the perfect simple baby sweater pattern. I'm thinking simple is good, especially if you're knitting for a boy.
The pattern is New Babeh by by Kayla Dyches, and I used Rowan's Amy Butler Belle Organic Aran yarn in this lovely soft gray color (zinc.) This yarn rules. It's incredibly soft – 50% organic wool and 50% organic cotton. I have a couple of extra skeins leftover, so I'm hoping to make some tiny socks or a hat (or both) to go with this sweater.

I'm pretty excited to add this to the pile of newborn clothes for our new little dude. I'm pretty sure that it will look much cuter once it's on a baby and not just lying flat on a blanket. Extra small knitting is turning out to be extra fun.

22 weeks /  by jen geigley

It's been kind of easy so far to overlook the fact that we're already this far in. We've been busy with the kitchen re-do, and I hope to share some pics of the yellow this week. Exciting! One more trip to IKEA and we're on the home stretch. And we've been working on what we call 'the new room,' which was formerly part of our living room but now has been converted into a new bedroom for Lo. Bo and his dad are pretty amazing ... one weekend and we had new walls and a closet and light fixtures. Boom! New room. We still have quite a bit of work to do to on the whole bedroom switcheroo and get everything ready for this baby boy that will be arriving in ... oh gosh, three and a half months. Gulp.
But I've been thoroughly enjoying this time with my little Lo. I know too well that it won't be just the two of us hanging out every day for much longer. We snuggle more and we bake pies and read books and I'm just trying to make our time count.  <3

21 weeks /  by jen geigley

21 weeks and time seems to be going so fast. I'm definitely feeling as big as a pumpkin. How timely! Fall is in full swing and we've been hitting the pumpkin patches and apple orchards pretty hard. But you can't help but embrace the change of seasons when you're in a season of change yourself. Pretty much the only time I look forward to the bitter cold winter months is when I'm pregnant; I already can't wait to hold that little babe. (Lo was born in February, too. Winter babies!) And I'm already anticipating holiday family gatherings and second helpings of pumpkin pie. Are you loving the season, too?